Dangerous (Courting the Darkness Saga) (14 page)

“I know, don’t remind
me. But I will add that no one said I had to be happy about it.”

“Keep it to yourself,
and don’t let Drake hear you. By the way, there is another reason for you to be
here.”

“Oh?”

“We’ve received word
that Santana’s clan may be trying to overthrow Drake’s rule for New Orleans. We
need everyone close by just in case.”

“Another
vampire war.
Hmmm…New Orleans has
never seen a vampire war. This could get ugly. But a good fight could make my
forced confinement worthwhile. Does that mean you too?”

“Yeah.”

“Does Dez know yet?”

“She and the queen went
out, so, no, she doesn’t know yet.”

Caleb laughed into the
receiver. “Dez is gonna be pissed.”

“Yeah, I know.”

***

Desiree sighed. “Sher,
you haven’t said a word in the last twenty minutes and only picked at your
lunch. I know how you must feel—”

Sherry’s mouth gaped.
“You know how I feel?” she interjected. “I’m numb, so please tell me.”

“I know you’re
depressed, but—”

“Depressed? What do I
have to be depressed about?” She laughed and Desiree saw the fury in her eyes.
“I just found out that I’m the fucking queen of the vampires, and I’m supposed
to be depressed?” she nearly shouted.

“Keep your voice down.”
Desiree glanced around the room and saw Sean glaring. “People will hear you.”

Sherry scowled. “Do you
think I care if people hear me?”

“Sherry, please calm
down,”

Sean rose from the
booth and approached their table. “It’s time to go.”

“Go?” She glared at
Sean. “Go where?”

“It is time to take you
back, sire.”

She laughed
mechanically. “Sire—you know that’s really funny, fucking hilarious in fact.”

Desiree was worried
now. “Come on, Sher, he’s right. We need to go.”

“Go?
With
you?”
She laughed again. “I don’t know where I’m going, but it certainly
isn’t with either of you.”

“You’re coming with
me,” Sean said calmly.

Sherry slid out of the
chair and took a few steps back. “Like hell I am. Tell Drake he can kiss my a—”

“Sleep.”
Sean interjected as he locked eyes with her. Sherry
dropped into his arms. His cell phone rang as he hoisted her over his shoulder.

Desiree’s mouth gaped.
“What did you do to her?”

“She’s in thrall,” he
said as he fished his phone out of his pocket and answered it.

“Yes, sire…Your queen
is unharmed, just unconscious… She was causing a scene and refused to return.”
Sean glanced around the room. “As you wish, we are on our way.” The cell phone snapped
shut.

He shifted Sherry’s
weight on his shoulder then nodded to Desiree. “Drake said we need to return
now.”

***

Sherry rolled over and
snuggled closer to the warmth as she felt the cold prickly gooseflesh travel
across her bare skin. In the dark, her hands felt around behind her for the
covers and found none. Reaching out in front, her hands brushed across smooth
hard abs. She yanked her hands back as if burned.
Oh God, there’s someone in bed with me
, her mind screamed.
Where are my clothes?
Her eyes flew open,
but the pitch-black in the room made it impossible to see, adding to the fear gripping
her heart. She had no idea where she was or how she got there. In that split
second panic settled in.
Run.
Her
heart hammered in her chest as she tried to scramble away, and strong hands
pulled her back. “Drake?” she squeaked.

“Yes, vixen,” he said,
pulling her across his chest and then wrapping his arms around her. He brushed
his lips across her forehead as he spoke. “Calm your fears, it is only me.”

The deep, familiar,
rumble of his voice washed over her, and a sense of peace calmed her soul as
she relaxed in his arms. “Thank God…I can’t see…it’s too dark in here. I woke
up not knowing where I am, how I got here, or
who
I suddenly found myself in bed with. I was praying it was you. I
think the shock took a couple years off my life.”

“You are safe,” he
said. “
and
where you belong.”

“Where are we? I’m
cold.” She felt him shift and a soft comforter slid across them both. “Thank
you.”

“You are in our
chamber.”

“I don’t remember how I
got here.”

He sighed deeply.
“According to Sean you were trying to run from me.” She heard the sadness in
his voice and it clutched at her heart. “He put you into a deep sleep and
returned you to me.” His statements touched the very root of her fear, her loss
of choice.

“So…you forced me back
here. We need to talk.”

“I do what must be
done. You belong with me.”

“I don’t have a say in
all this?”

“You do, but the Fates
have made their decision. Our ways and laws are as old as the threads of time
and we are bound by them. The rules of our race allow us only one mate in a
lifetime, and since we are immortal the choice of the mate is determined by the
Fates. You were chosen at the time of your birth to be my mate.”

“Come on, Drake. You
can’t tell me that you really believe all that crap. The year is two thousand
and eleven, not seventeen eleven. Look at us. Look at yourself. You are perfect
and I am…not. I am just me, plain ole Sherry.”

“I do not know why you
always try to belittle yourself to me. I see you as a strong, desirable woman,
worthy to be my queen and rule beside me. And yes, I do believe it. I know it
to be true. You are the one that the Fates have chosen for me, and you are
perfect to me.”

“How do you know,
Drake? How do you know that I am
the one
?
I mean, it just doesn’t make sense to me. I am very fond of you and you are
very important to me. I definitely can’t deny the attraction to you. I just
don’t see why you chose me. I’m nothing special. I’m afraid that one day I’ll
wake up to find you gone because you finally realized that I’m
a nobody
.”

“You were never a
nobody
, little one. You are my chosen queen. But to answer
your question, I know because we recognize our mates for the first time, not by
face, but by scent. I knew the moment I crossed Mica’s threshold and caught
your scent that I had found my mate. I consider myself very fortunate that you
are beautiful as well.”

“But I’m not, and
someday soon you will see it.”

“You are.”

“Okay, okay, for
arguments sake I am…passable, I guess. What if I hadn’t been? If I had been
ugly—”

“Your appearance wouldn’t
have mattered, because the scents of our mates drive us to the point of
obsession. I would have still claimed you…I would have had no choice. Our
primal instinct takes over, and I wouldn’t have been able to fight it.”

She scoffed. “I find
that hard to believe.”

“I don’t
want
to fight it, vixen.”

“I still don’t get it.”

“Sherry—”

“I’m not trying to argue,
Drake, I’m trying to understand. As I said before, I’m just me. I’m nothing
special. You claim that you think I’m beautiful—”

“You are,” he
interjected.

“Let me finish. But
then you claim looks have nothing to do with it. Well, if it’s not looks, then what
is it?”

“It only took a small
taste of your blood to confirm the signs and seal the bond. Your blood sings to
me, little one, it sings to my soul. Its siren’s call drives me to the point of
irrational thoughts. You are now mine forever, as I am now forever and always yours.”

“Forever?”

“Yes; through our bond
I will always sense where you are, what you’re feeling, and when I wish I will be
able to read your thoughts. Once you’ve tasted my blood then you’ll be able to
do the same. Our souls are now linked in such a way that we need each other to
survive.”

“What do you
mean,
that we need each other to survive?”

“A vampire cannot
survive without their mate. If one dies, the other soon follows.”

“So, the only reason
I’m here now is because you can’t survive without me.”

Drake sighed heavily. “For
reasons I cannot fathom, you do not deem yourself worthy of love. Although love
is not a requirement for mated pairs, you are here now because I love you and
cannot survive without you.”

Her heart raced.
He loves me?

“I have loved you from
the moment our eyes met.”

The darkness of the
room was beginning to get on her nerves. She heard the candor in his voice, but
wanted to see the sincerity in his eyes. Her heart wanted to believe him, but the
years of being shunned by society for what she was had left its mark. Trust in
another didn’t come easy to her. “You can’t love me. We haven’t known each
other long enough, and for the record there is no such thing as love at first
sight.” She felt Drake shift and slightly pull away.

“Come here, vixen.”

“What are you doing?”

“I’m going to convince
you of how I really feel.”

“How are you gonna do
that?”

“Through
our ways…vampire ways.”

“Huh?”

“You only need a small
taste of my blood to seal the mental bond between us. The physical bond is
already there.”

“I don’t…I mean…will it…ugh!
Damn it, Sherry, just spit out a simple question.” She heard him laugh softly
and smacked his arm playfully. “Stop laughing at me.”

“I will try. I already
know your question because I can hear your mind screaming it through our bond.
I will allow you the opportunity to voice it.”

“I’m not saying that I
believe all that you’re telling me. I know you don’t lie; we’ve been through
that one. I do trust that you believe what you are saying is true. I want to
know, if I try what you are suggesting, will it change me? Will I become one of
you?”

“You are already one of
us.”

She took a sharp intake
of breath.
What? How?

“You are my mate, vixen,
that makes you one of us; but no, you are not a vampire, and tasting my blood
will not make you one.”

Relieved, she expelled
her breath slowly. “Okay, convince me.”

He nipped at the
sensitive spot at the nape of her neck, sending a ripple of need through her. “For
our kind, mates typically exchange blood during sex.”

She sighed, snuggling
closer, giving in to the intoxicating feelings, and felt herself grow wet. “Mmmm,
go on.”

She heard the slight
amusement in his voice as he continued. “It is a highly…erotic and a very
addicting experience,” he said as he guided her hand to his engorged cock.

Keep laughing, sire
, she thought.
I may be new to
this, but
I will make you pay.
She
ran her fingers over the silken member, and with the other hand touched
herself, aching at the mere thought of riding him hard and fast. His cock grew
harder beneath her touch. She ran her hand down the length of him, rolling the
heavy sack between her fingers, then back up to tease the head.
I will make you ache for me as badly as I do
for you.

“I’m not laughing at
you, love, but I don’t believe that I’ll ever tire of your sense of humor. I
enjoy your…eagerness. I can hear your thoughts, vixen, and for the record, I
already do. You are playing with fire, teasing me with those thoughts.”

She smiled, knowing
full well he couldn’t see her in the dark. “Good.” She didn’t really believe he
could read her thoughts, although he was right on the mark about what she had
been thinking. She sat up,
then
draped her leg across
his body, straddling him. Growing bolder with his approving growl, she rocked
herself seductively over the tip of his cock.
“Erotic and
addicting, huh?”

He hissed out a “Yesss”
as he thrust his hips up.

She backed up just out
of his reach. “Uh uh, no, I don’t think so, sire. If you’re trying to convince
me, we’re doing this my way. If I want to take my time and tease you first, I
will. You will wait until I am ready.” A low growl rumbled from his chest and
she laughed. “
My
way, sire.”

The amusement returned
to his voice. “Are you giving an order to your king?”

“Yes, I—”

He pulled her down and
covered her mouth with his, cutting off her response. His tongue slipped
between her parted lips, plunging deeply, stroking hers. He ran his hands
across her hips to her ass,
then
slipped two fingers
into her liquid heat.

She moaned and swayed
into his hand, the need for more coiling in the pit of her belly.

His lips left hers to
travel along her neck as his fingers continued to plunge deeper with each
stroke. He said, “You were saying?”